Content marketing has become one of the most critical activities in business. Currently, more than ninety percent of businesses worldwide use it to promote themselves and their products. However, despite this widespread use, businesses still walk straight into common content marketing pitfalls.
These mistakes waste time and effort, hinder their marketing goals and often cause the loss of other important benefits.
The Benefits of Content Marketing
For entrepreneurs, content marketing is the foundation of effective sales, branding, and marketing. It attracts customers, educates them, and leads them through the sales funnel. It brings unique visitors to the website to interact with the content.
By customizing their content, companies stand a chance of reaching targeted markets. Viral content extends these markets further and increases engagement on social media. The challenge is finding the right targets, markets, and platforms for the content.
Content with a call-to-action provides the opportunity to upsell the customer. When done right, valuable content contributes to customer retention.
Content Marketing Pitfalls for Beginners
Content marketing budgets are expected to rise by over 25% in 2020, as business people realize the vast potential that kind of marketing holds. However, when they start delving into content marketing, marketers and business owners tend to make some basic mistakes.
These include:
- targeting the wrong market;
- using the wrong platforms;
- ignoring analytics;
- neglecting to develop a content strategy;
- lacking evergreen content.
While these content marketing pitfalls are easy to identify, they can lead to other related issues, which further undermine your marketing goals. Keep reading to learn how to avoid these common mistakes in content marketing.
Tips for Avoiding Some Common Pitfalls of Content Marketing
Let’s take a closer look at some pitfalls of content marketing and what you should do about them.
Don’t Sacrifice Quality for Quantity
The first mistake marketers often make is assuming they need a lot of content to get leads. On the contrary, a well-designed, targeted, and SEO-optimized content always accomplishes more than a flood of generalized posts aimed at no one in particular.
The problem with focusing on quantity is that it increases the likelihood of producing substandard work.
Shoddy work is a product of desperation. It comes from the fear that failing to post an adequate amount of content will make you lose out on customers. However, content produced in a rush to meet quantity demands often lacks focus and swarms with errors, which you definitely want to avoid.
The reality is high-quality content will always attract customers.
Another negative aspect of overproducing content is the risk of overwhelming the viewers. People block or unsubscribe when they feel overloaded with information. This places you at a disadvantage because it hurts your remarketing plans.
How to Maintain Quality
Before creating content, research what the audience needs. Understand why you are making the content and for whom. Those details give you direction and purpose.
Evaluate your buyer personas and the media that appeal to them. Every platform has its posting guidelines, so ensure that your work meets and exceeds those guidelines. If there’s software that can improve your content, use it.
Choose the kind of content you excel at and outsource the other types if you don’t have an in-house expert. Buy any equipment needed to upgrade your work. For example, a quality microphone can boost your video content.
Your content has to flow. If your work is so rife with errors that it distracts from the message, users will notice. Worse, they’ll think your service or products also contain flaws. This will make them reluctant to spend money on your company.
Create a Unique Brand Personality and Stay Consistent
Build your brand by having a unique personality. Ask yourself how you want your audience to relate to you. Do you want them to see you as a family brand, sophisticated, compassionate, or sporty? Any of these images will attract different customers.
Content marketing will frame the vision you have for your brand. All of your content will reinforce your brand to the public. For example, when you hear the name ‘Mercedes,’ you think class.
The secret to creating and strengthening your brand personality is consistency. Make sure you select the appropriate keywords and instill them in your audience through repetition until they subconsciously associate them with you.
Make sure your ads give a consistent message. Tell stories and invite your audience to share how they feel about your brand. Their sincere opinions will raise the awareness of your brand and its values with new audiences.
Keep customer experiences consistent every time they interact with your brand. Reliability plays a significant role in enhancing brand loyalty.
Don’t Expect Results Quickly
Slow results are a significant source of frustration for marketers and entrepreneurs. A lack of instant success makes them question the effectiveness of their strategies and tactics. Don’t worry, though. In content marketing, the best approach is to wait for the long-term benefits.
Those benefits are manifold.
One long-term benefit is becoming an authority in your field. This can be an issue that’s specifically plaguing new businesses and startups. In a rush to quickly acquire their first clients, they fail to see the long-term goals of content marketing.
However, considering that customers need to warm up to a new concept or product first, content marketing is an excellent way to establish long-lasting authority.
Other benefits include increased engagement on social media and greater sales conversions. Your brand will be healthier, and you’ll have long email lists, subscriptions, or followers.
To get those benefits, be sure to implement a good content marketing strategy. By creating a strategy, you can plan content for all stages of your customer’s journey so that they get a seamless experience wherever they are in the sales funnel.
Features of a Good Content Marketing Strategy
Here is an overview of some basic best practices for a good content marketing strategy.
Well-Defined Goals
Any good strategy begins by understanding and setting clear goals. What is your objective? Do you want new followers, or is your aim to increase your engagement? Do you want to convince your audience to choose the premium options instead of the standard ones?
Creating for the Audience
Have you created a buyer persona? Have you identified the relevant market for your products? Find out the best platforms or media for connecting with the consumers.
Clear and Cohesive Content Strategy
Which types of content will you use? Will the content type fit your goals and your brand personality? Make sure to prepare content for every part of the buyer’s journey.
Consistent Structure
If you decide to write blogs, establish a style and structure for your work. How will you incorporate SEO into your blog posts? Will you use, for instance, AP Style or Chicago Style of writing?
A Content Calendar
Decide in advance how often you’ll update the website. Work with the sales, customer service, and marketing teams to align your messages. Branding and messaging must remain consistent throughout.
Surveys and Webinars
It’s essential to get an idea of customer pain points. Surveys will tell you what the customer thinks about your company. Webinars allow you to connect in real-time and hear how the customer feels.
Understanding the pain points will help you tailor your messages better. Your new knowledge will help with keyword development and SEO. It will be much easier for your content to rank high in search engines if you use the right words.
Sharing Your Content on The Right Platforms
Once your content is ready, use social media and influencers to spread your message. Send emails to your subscribers, use ads, or give offers on your website. Create viral content and rely on word-of-mouth to enhance your reach. Another good option is guest blogging on popular platforms.
Using Analytics
A successful strategy requires you to check your numbers often. Look at your ROI (return on investment) and KPIs (key performance indicators). Check website visitor activity and your levels of engagement online. Change your strategy as necessary.
Implementing these practices is indispensable for an effective content marketing strategy.
Succeed in Content Marketing
Take note of the content marketing pitfalls mentioned above to avoid limiting your marketing efforts. Focusing on the value of what you offer will always bring you many new users. The problems come when you don’t have a strategy.
Reuse content if you notice it is useful. Repurpose it where possible or update it to keep it relevant. Remember, you don’t have to handle all types of content. Outsource some of it to niche experts.
Choose platforms wisely. Ensure the content on your websites is mobile-friendly. Have a call-to-action to increase your conversion rates.
If you avoid these most common content marketing pitfalls, your business will reap the rewards for a long time to come.
